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- 1. HPR1.COM | August 30, 2012 | HIGH PLAINS READER 9 By Brittany Negaard Staff Writer Ever find yourself wondering what the world will look like 125 years from now? Or more specifically, what will life in Fargo be like? Erik Meyer, of Moorhead, has been working to create a picture of that future over the last four years. About a week ago, he uploaded his first episode of 2125-ish, a cartoon taking place in a corporate office in Fargo's future reality. He's been working on the show for about a year. The pilot episode, Office Wrangler, was launched on Indiegogo.com. The site will enable Meyer to raise funds for his project; which thus far he has funded com- pletely on his own. The idea started as an elaborate Wordpress project, Fargone2125.com. Meyer details the events and changes over the next century and a quarter that turn the community of Fargo into a post-apocalyptic police state. This made-up community of the future barely resembles the Fargo we know today. Meyer created a timeline explaining the state of Fargo, which is basically a wasteland. A lot happens in those 125 years, including nuclear attacks around the world, America declaring bankruptcy, and discussion of reli- gion becomes viewed as political extremism. On his Wordpress, Meyer explains the com- munity he sees in the future, Fargone follows a history of gradual decay, failed initiatives and increasing corporate rights at the cost of human rights; these colors do not run and instead plow on, blindly, despite all reason, over the edge of the cliff called nationalism. This is the greatest country on earth, if youre looking for a plasma manifold, a microwave emitter, and a toroid centrifuge beneath a rail car atop twin shipping containers filled with medical waste. However, the dismal picture of the future isn't meant to just be a negative foretelling. Besides the sci-fi dystopian future Meyer pres- ents, he also includes ideas and suggestions to prevent our community from turning into such an ugly place. Meyer has always been interested in story- telling. He earned his BFA in creative writing at MSUM in 2008. Creating Fargone was a way for him to tell his story, and now this cartoon enables him to do that in a more interactive way. For me, its about telling the story, not how you do it, says Meyer. I already had the website which basically details Fargo 120 years in the future, so I've been doing a variety of projects based on that, be it a role playing game, or a card game, or I've been making all these other kind of pieces of content for it just because I like doing it, says Meyer. I'd been doing the drawings because they supplemented the website. About a year ago, a friend introduced him to Kdenlive, a free, user-created, Linux-based computer software that allows users to turn sketches and drawings into animation. Meyer had already been creating sketches for Fargone2125 in his spare time. Using Kdan seemed like the perfect fit. Kdan allowed him to turn his story into animation utilizing a free software. In 2125ish, Meyer uses the freeze-frame cartoon style popularized by Brad Neely. The cartoon follows the volatile work environ- ment of Chad Enterprises, an office floating above the city proper of Fargo. If you check out Meyer's Wordpress, you realize that these office workers are actually pretty well off. They are detached from the slums of South Fargo, or the the wasteland of West Fargo, which is sort of a mall built on top of a mall as Meyer explains. Meyer is the sole illustrator, but has had some help from friends with other elements. Julio Villamil allowed Meyer to use his profes- sional-level audio recording equipment. Villamil also helped with production. A few other friends do the voices for some characters. Mike Christianson does the voice for Reuben, and Allison Allery voices Susan. Meyer does the voice of other characters, Jerry and Nygard. Also included in the office cast is a talking water cooler, who throughout the sea- son is very suggestive that people drink his flu- ids. While Fargo is a dismal place in this imagi- nary future, small details like the water cooler make the cartoon fun to watch. Meyer wanted the first episode to focus on developing the characters, but the rest of the series will have more more story arches that explain the office environment. While the char- acters are living in this dystopia 125 years from now, they are still relatable. Some of the characters are hopeless, but funny and endearing at the same time, explains Meyer. The company, Chad Enterprises, represents the corporate office environment Meyer has developed a disliking for over past experi- ences. I've worked in those environments a couple of times ... peoples opinions masquerade as policy, explains Meyer. Chad Enterprises is a futuristic model of today's corporate offices. The people that own the company are the like the ultimate management, they're basically the ultra-wealthy people who have companies only to watch people work. They don't actually care about the work they do, they just kind of enjoy being able to screw with people, explains Meyer. As the season progresses, viewers realize that not a lot of actual work is getting done. The characters are more immersed in their own personal problems. They are are removed from the actual work being done by the company, which is minimal. In fact, characters only produce entertain- ment for people, and they even do that unknowingly, says Meyer. Originally from Eau Claire, Wisc., Meyer enjoys living in the FM area, and has lived here for years. He chose Fargo as the location to tell this story because he felt it was a safe place to engage discussion about problems fac- ing society. You wouldn't want this world to really exist, so as much as these characters say funny things, I do hope to have that as the season builds. I want people to realize, 'Wait, this is horrifying, says Meyer. The discussion of these looming social prob- lems could be a lot bigger with the help of the fundraising website Indiegogo. Meyer just launched a 2-month campaign on the site to promote his work. He hopes to raise $5,000 to be able to have the time and resources to con- tinue with the series. The site enables creators to find supporters and sponsors worldwide. Indiegogo requires users to set up a timeline for production goals. Meyer plans to have the first series completely released over the next two months. For various levels of donations are different levels of rewards. Higher donations give view- ers access to more content about the show. Asking for donations from the website seems more comfortable to Meyer than going directly to a production company to pitch his idea. It also gives him more freedom. Its an institution for social change without going through establishment, says Meyer of Indiegogo. Are you still wondering what Fargo might look like 125 years into the future? Check out the first episode, Office Wrangler, and sup- port Meyer in his goal to engage social discus- sion. For more information, visit Fargone2125.com, and to donate visit indiegogo.com/2125ish. Check out the episodes as they are released at vimeo.com/groups/136350 Questions and Comments: brittany@hpr1.com New Cartoon Based on Fargo in the Future